''Planchonella eerwah'' is a rare species of

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

rainforest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...

tree in the family

Sapotaceae 240px, '' Madhuca longifolia'' var. ''latifolia'' in Narsapur, Medak district, India The Sapotaceae are a family of flowering plants belonging to the order (biology)">order Ericales">family (biology)">family of flowering plants belonging to th ...

. Common names include shiny-leaved condoo, black plum and wild apple. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to south eastern

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, with a restricted distribution and regarded as

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

. The tree was first described as ''Sideroxylon eerwah'' in 1894 by

Frederick Manson Bailey Frederick Manson Bailey (8 March 1827 – 25 June 1915) was a botanist active in Australia, who made valuable contributions to the characterisation of the flora of Queensland. He was known by his middle name, Manson. Early life Bailey was bo ...

, before being moved to its current binomial name by Baehni in 1942. The species name is derived from Mount Eerwah near

Eumundi Eumundi is a rural town and locality in the Sunshine Coast Region, Queensland, Australia. Eumundi is very popular on the coast for its bi-weekly farmers' markets. In the , the locality of Eumundi had a population of 2,504 people. Geography Eu ...

in Queensland. A genetic analysis of material found that ''Planchonella eerwah'' was most closely related to ''

Planchonella cotinifolia ''Planchonella cotinifolia'' is an Australian tree in the family Sapotaceae. The common names include small-leaved plum, yellow lemon and small-leaved coondoo. It occurs in the drier rainforests from the Richmond River, New South Wales to the Wen ...

'', and ''

Planchonella australis ''Planchonella australis'', also known by the synonym ''Pouteria australis'', is a medium to tall rainforest tree of the family Sapotaceae native to Queensland and New South Wales, Australia. It is known by the common name black apple, wild plum ...

'' was a sister to the two species – the three forming a distinct group. ''Planchonella eerwah'' grows as a tall shrub or small tree reaching high with scaly bark on its trunk. It has leathery leaves with prominent raised veins which measure in length. Flowers and fruit can be found in any season. The flowers are a cream-green colour and hairy and are about 4 mm long. The dark red-purple to black fruit are oval to globular, measuring long, with three to five seeds. It is restricted to three locations in southeastern Queensland. It grows on rocky slopes in vine thickets and rainforest. Dominant associated species in southern populations include hoop pine (''

Araucaria cunninghamii ''Araucaria cunninghamii'' is a species of ''Araucaria'' known as hoop pine. Other less commonly used names include colonial pine, Queensland pine, Dorrigo pine, Moreton Bay pine and Richmond River pine. The scientific name honours the botanist a ...

''), ''

Harpullia pendula ''Harpullia pendula'', commonly known as tulipwood, mogun-mogun, tulip lancewood, Queensland tulipwood, black tulipwood or black tulip, is a species of flowering plant in the family Sapindaceae, and is endemic to eastern Australia. It is a tree ...

'', and members of the genus ''

Flindersia ''Flindersia'' is a genus of 17 species of small to large trees in the family Rutaceae. They have simple or pinnate leaves, flowers arranged in panicles at or near the ends of branchlets and fruit that is a woody capsule containing winged seed ...

'', and in the northern '' Argyrodendron'' species, '' Atalaya multiflora'', '' Choricarpia subargentea'', '' Excoecaria dallachyana'', and '' Flindersia australis''. Threats include overrunning of habitat by weeds such as lantana (''

Lantana camara ''Lantana camara'' (common lantana) is a species of flowering plant in the verbena family (Verbenaceae), native to the American tropics. It is a very adaptable species, which can inhabit a wide variety of ecosystems; once it has been introduced i ...

''), and in the Sunshine Coast glycine (''

Neonotonia wightii ''Neonotonia wightii'', the perennial soybean, is a species of flowering plant in the family Fabaceae, native to subSaharan Africa, Yemen, India, and Sri Lanka, and widely introduced as a forage in Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, northern Argentina, t ...

''), corky passionflower (''

Passiflora suberosa ''Passiflora suberosa'' is a species of passionflower that is native to the Americas. It is commonly known as corkystem passionflower due to the corkiness of older stems. Other common names include corky passion vine, cork-bark passion flower, ...

''), and umbrella tree (''

Heptapleurum actinophyllum ''Heptapleurum actinophyllum'' (formerly ''Schefflera actinophylla'') is a tree in the family Araliaceae. It is native to tropical rainforests and gallery forests in northern and northeastern Queensland coasts and the Northern Territory of Austra ...

'').

Feral pig A feral pig is a domestic pig The pig (''Sus domesticus''), also called swine (: swine) or hog, is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is named the domestic pig when distinguishing it from other members of the g ...

s eat the fruit and seeds.

References

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q717643, from2=Q14912703 Flora of Queensland eerwah Plants described in 1894